Does anyone have any good things to say about the Chehalis Springers? I need to hear that someone got hooked up so I can call in sick Monday. I normally have no trouble with that but since Ive done that 7 times since the Columbia opened Im walking a tight rope with the boss (and the wife). I probably need a new job anyway. Thanks all....

The best thing I can say about Chehalis springers is they taste great! ... Less filling! ... Taste great! ... Less --- Actually I did get one report about mid-week that it is kind of slow for them yet. Don't know how they did this weekend though. If you want a day worth playing hooky for some chi'nooky, I suggest targeting the Wednesday Columbia springer re-opener. Tight lines.

RT

Thanks RT. I've been wearing out that patch of road between my place and Nemah. It has been loads of fun but creates some long days. Im hoping that some fish have trickled in from the Harbor, up into the best stretches of river, to make my commute a little shorter. Hopefully some guys that fished it this weekend will post tonight with some success...Later

Sorry, but they're not quite in yet. A lot of smolts and shakers, but no real big ones in yet. I spent all day on the Chehalis today, had some great hits and one on for a bit, but all small. There were some seals in the river though.

I'd say stay home and save the day for when the fish are in. It was a nice day on the river, my kind of day. Good friends, rain, lots of laughs, and some fish on the line (if only for a bit). No other boats had fish either. You could see TONS of smolt jumping. But you never know, monday could be the day they swarm out of the harbor into the mouth.

Good luck.

hi peeps, is this river fishable from a pontoon near the mouth or is it fast current? and does anyone have directions on how to get down there, and i am wondering what are you guys using for lures/ bait, thanks for any info..**berkley boy**

Just got back from fishing the Chehalis from the bank. Didn't touch a thing nor did I see anything roll. But I did see a lot of smolt in the river.

I dont know why I started this thread. When I think about going fishing I go, no reason (or excuse) required (thats the way it should be).

So, I called in sick, and went to the Chehalis today. I fished the last part of the out going and a couple hours of incoming between sand island and cosi....misreading the tide book and missing the tide screwed me. But, no fish are being caught by the locals either. I talked to my brother and a couple of my H.S. buddies, who still live in the area and get out every other day or so. They have not had any better results fishing the meat of the outgoing. They say they always end up fishing sturgeon (getting pretty good too). I will keep checking the locals for fish reports and post if anyone starts hitting anything.

Berkley - The river gets pretty big below Montesano and is about 35 ft deep on average with some deeper holes of 60 to 70 ft. Major amounts of water flush through the lower river and it's all tidal influenced so you need to know your tables before setting out. On the outgoing it runs pretty hard. You could run it on the outgoing like any river and stay pretty close to the bank and the 20ft zone. But remember the tide. If you dont make your take out before the incoming tide your stuck in no mans land. There are a couple of nice launches (Monte and Cosi) but not much in between (8 to 10 miles?...never checked it). I don't think I would go out in anything without a motor on this river (I havnt seen anyone float it either). Get a good map and check out the river miles. it's a long one that picks up a lot of water along the way.

Later

You can float the river if you wanted to by putting in at the Keys road launch and taking out at the monte boat launch but i would recommend using a boat with a motor because there are some holes you are going to want to run through a couple times and its hard to row against that current when it gets going.

thanks for the warning, i havent got my pontoon yet, but i am allways interested in what rivers are floatable around here, for it willbe coming soon in the mail and when i get it, i want to float some rivers, what about the lewis or cowlitz? kalama? thanks again.. **berkley boy**

berkley boy: The Kalama is a good river to start out on. There's not a lot of real technical water and there are plenty of put in?take out points on the river. The Lewis also affords a lot of floating opportunities but the access can be a bit tricky at times. It's been a while since I have fished the Lewis, so maybe questions regarding access to it would best be answered by somebody else. In any case, the Kalama is definately worth floating. the water may get a bit shallow in some spots, but other than that, it's a pretty laid back float.